butterfly gardening keeps monarch popluation up

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The Green Club is building a Butterfly Garden! 

This year the school is participating in an organization called Okies for Monarchs. Okies for Monarchs is an organization that encourages schools to plant gardens with native plants that are food to Monarch butterflies. 

Milkweed is the only plant Monarch caterpillars eat so it is essential to have it available to them. Because their wintering grounds are rapidly shrinking because of deforestation, and other habitat disruptions, the Monarch population is declining. Though, Oklahoma is right in their path of migration so planting gardens here would be perfect! 

The Green club will start building the garden and expect to finish it sometime near spring. 

Stacy Turner, the 8th grade science teacher at DMS, is the one who will be hosting the butterfly garden. Stacey Turner says that she is excited to work with the students in Green Club. Okies for Monarchs are the ones who gave the seeds for the plants and the green club will work on getting donations from other businesses and organizations from around the area. As of right now, the butterfly garden is on hold. Stacy Turner said“They haven’t been able to get the stuff for the garden so we are just waiting to be able to get the stuff to be able to do it.”   The DMS green club is excited for the event to happen. We are hoping for the green club to be able to get the stuff to build it and start it and finish it by spring. This is an important opportunity for the green club and Stacy turner. Jade Guerrero-Ruiz said “Monarch butterflies are interesting insects. And they need to be conserved for generations to come.”